RM200 Sara aid rolls out on Jan 9, RM500 necessities cash on Jan 20: PM

 

The monthly Rahmah Necessities Aid (Sara) of up to RM200 will be credited into the MyKad of eligible Malaysians in stages, starting on Jan 9, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim announced.

Meanwhile, he said the first phase of Rahmah Cash Aid (STR), which involves amounts of up to RM500, will begin on Jan 20.

Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said four percent of recipients did not utilise the cash aid last year, resulting in a surplus of RM150 million.

“As I promised, the RM150 million will not be taken by the government,” he said in a speech during the Prime Minister’s Department’s monthly assembly this morning.

He said the money will instead be distributed to victims of domestic violence residing in shelters, students with disabilities and special needs, and the purchase of medical devices for poor patients.

This will be coordinated by the relevant ministries, he added.

Due to a last-minute appeal from Higher Education Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir at the cabinet meeting this morning, Anwar said RM15 million of the money will go to food banks and student kitchens.

More locations

The RM100 Sara aid to all Malaysians above 18 years of age will be credited on Feb 9, he said, adding that this was to help with the upcoming Ramadan and Chinese New Year preparations.

Anwar also announced the government’s intention to increase the number of locations that allow purchases with cash aid.

He said the government aims to expand the programme to 50,000 shops - an increase of 10,000 premises compared to last year.

This was due to complaints that the cash aid could not be redeemed in rural areas, as the stores there were not part of the programme, he explained.

Education sector

The premier also announced an increase in allocation for Chinese vernacular schools this year from RM50 million to RM80 million.

Tamil vernacular schools will receive RM50 million, he added.

As for the Early Schooling Aid programme, Anwar said parents will be receiving RM150 for each child studying in a primary or secondary government school within this week or next.

"We increased it before up to Form 5, now we have increased it up to Form 6," he said.

However, the government has two conditions: parents must go to their children's schools and listen to the teachers regarding any issues involving their children.

"They cannot use representatives... the condition is they have to go to the school because the expenditure (for this programme) is high, RM800 million per year," he said.